Individualism and Happiness

Happiness is not one thing; it means different things in different places, different societies, and different cultural contexts. There are multiple “pursuits of happiness”.

It's impossible to define "happiness". It's left to each of us to define what "happiness" is. Happiness cannot be achieved in minutes it comes from the pursuit of happiness, Working towards and achieving goals. Pursuit of happiness differs from person to person and from culture to culture. Diener and his colleagues (Diener et al., 2003) believe life evaluations are important to the quality of life in all societies because it is hard to imagine either a good life or a good society without a positive sense of SWB (positive psychology pg114). However, they argue that every culture has set values, and goals that people use to evaluate their happiness. Culture refers to beliefs, social norms, religious background, these characteristics shared by people in a place and time for everyday existence. Understanding the culture differences will allow you to understand the differences in of happiness. For the most part each culture has certain values and goals that are looked upon to be the acceptable norm for happiness and that is how happiness is measures. The media, parents, schools, peers influence the way people think, act, and feel towards a successful life. The general population that surrounds you influences people's ideas about the meaning of happiness and how to achieve it. Comparing the traditional American perspective on happiness with the traditional Asian perspective on happiness, by cultural and historical factors that contribute to happiness. Americans are individualistic culture which means the people are primary focus is that of themselves and their immediate families. In contrast to Asians, which are, collectivistic cultures, where the members are concerned more with the well being of the group rather then their own well-being....

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...﻿Happiness is deceptively simple. It’s about being satisfied with life and experiencing more positive emotions than negative ones. Still, many of us find the pursuit of happiness to be frustratingly difficult. A relatively new branch of psychology called positive psychology is studying what makes people happy—and what doesn’t. Researchers are learning that the keys to happiness are within everyone’s reach.
Whatishappiness?
Happinessisthoughtofasthegoodlife,freedomfromsuffering,flourishing,well-being,joy,prosperity,andpleasure.
Its pursuit is enshrined as a fundamental right in the United States and occupies most of us. But what do we really know about happiness? Can we study it? Are we born with it? Can we make ourselves happier? Who’s happy and who’s not, and why? What makes us happy? Researchers are learning more and more about the answers to these questions.
Meaning
of happiness
Sources
of happiness
Who is
happier?
Doesn't
work
Common
misconceptions
What does happiness mean to you?
Defining happiness
Defining happiness can seem as elusive as achieving it. We want to be happy, and we can say whether we are or not, but can it really be defined, studied and measured? And can we use this learning to become happier?
Psychologists say yes, and that there are good reasons for doing so. Positive psychology is “the scientific...

...The American Emphasis on the Pursuit of Happiness
The pursuit of happiness is described in the Declaration of Independence as an inalienable right. People are encouraged to make life choices based on what makes them happy and satisfied. Aristotle described happiness as the meaning and purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.
American Culture and Happiness
The American pursuit of happiness can seem as elusive as achieving it. We want to be happy, and we can say whether we are or not we are happy, but can it really be defined, studied, and measured? Psychologists and research says yes, and there is good reason to do so. Happiness is highly individualized and influenced by culture, what makes Americans happy does not necessarily make other cultures happy. Americans express unique internal attributes that distinguish them from others, a positive view of self that enhances self-esteem. A person’s subjective well-being can be described as a combination of life satisfaction and having more positive emotions than negative emotions. Happiness can be measured as having three parts: pleasure, engagement, and meaning. Pleasure is the “feel good” part of happiness. Engagement refers to living a “good life” of work, family, friends, and hobbies. Meaning refers to using our strengths to contribute to a larger purpose (Wallis, 2005).
One of the biggest...

...
Happiness Over Everything
As a human, we all have many natural instincts. These instincts could be divided in to instincts of survival, procreation, and worship. One of the most interesting instincts under survival that we have is desire for happiness. Our evolution has given us two meanings of happiness, and we constantly “work” hard to achieve these types of happiness. According to the article, “Enjoyment as an Alternative to Materialism,” written by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, she states humans have “two contradictory motivations: pleasure, which is the well-being we feel when we eat, rest, and procreate; and enjoyment, which is the exhilarating sensation we feel when going beyond requirements of survival”(Csikszentmihalyi1). Both of these traits reward us with happiness that we desire. However, pleasure is the happiness that does not last long, and individuals who seek pleasure as main reason for living are not going to grow beyond what the genes have programmed them to desire (Csikszentmihalyi2). Unlike pleasure, enjoyment is not always pleasant, and it can be very stressful at times (Csikszentmihalyi2), and this is why people don’t choose enjoyment over pleasure although enjoyment is the true and lasting happiness we can achieve. In order to achieve happiness, people need to learn how to enjoy little things, go beyond their limit, and achieve their...

...Materialism, Religion and Happiness
1. Definition of Happiness
A.Difficulties of pursuing happiness
B. Different levels of happiness needed in different stages
2. Relationship between happiness and materialism
A. Definition of materialism
B. Materialism is negatively related to happiness
3. Relationship between happiness and religion
A. Definition of religion
B. Reasons why religious people are happier (Christian and Buddhist)
C. Religion is positively related to happiness
4.Conclusion
Relationship Between Materialism, Religion and HappinessHappiness is a mental or emotional state of well-being characterized by positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. Happiness is something we’ve learned to strive for and there are different levels of happiness needed in different stages during our life journey. However, sometimes even if we can find happiness, we are too exhausted to enjoy. According to the article “ the pursuit of happiness”, it mentions that there are two difficulties when we are pursuing happiness. One of the difficulties is to know we’re happy as it is not possible to gauge happiness while we are experiencing it. Another difficult is that we’ve stereotyped happiness. Only good...

...﻿Happiness and Virtue: Julia Annas
“Virtue and Eudaimonism”
Annas begins by taking stock of contemporary virtue ethics. She notices that there has been a resurgence in thinking about morality from the perspective of virtue (areté), however, at the same time, it seems as though we have not likewise taken guidance from the ancients in terms of thinking about happiness (Eudaimonia).
She thinks that to focus on the one without the other is to miss the point. After all, it is tough to make sense of the idea of virtue – understood as proper functioning – without understanding the purpose at which virtue aims: the happy or eudaimon life
So, the structure of her paper will be as follows:
She will first explore the idea of ‘virtue’ from the perspectives of both modern and ancient theories.
Next, she will explore the concept of ‘happiness’ from each of the perspectives.
Finally, she will try to synthesize, and in her words, ‘transform’ each concept into a more robust notion of each.
Virtue – Modern and Ancient:
Annas notices that our concept of virtue is utterly a mess; even contrary sometimes. She notes that people just have no clear sense of what a virtue might be and how we ought to incorporate it into our lives.
She writes (p. 247):
It is as though we realize that virtue is a powerful normative notion, and would like to make more use of it, but have somehow lost our grip on what it is.
She believes that...

...﻿Luke Heywood
Ms. Miller
Sophomore English Pd. 6
3 November 2014
Individualism Outline
I. Intro: The battle between Ideologies has raged since the early 20th century creating friends as well as enemies among neighboring nations and their people. The Soviet Union and the United States divided during the cold war. Today people argue over freedom/order. Only one allows life and freedom: Individualism.
Thesis: Society thrives most by promoting the superior ideology Individualism for it allows freedom of the individual to prosper in society.
II. Individualism is the idea that life belongs to the individual and that they are free exercise their inalienable rights without restraint whereas Collectivism is the idea life belongs to society where the individual merely a part of a governments “greater good.”
A. Support:
1. “Individualism is the idea that life belongs to him and that he has an inalienable right to live as he sees fit, to act on his own judgment, to keep
Heywood 2
and use the product of his effort, and to pursue the values of his choosing” (Biddle 1).
a. The US constitution was based on this idea and with it they created a nation based on individual rights.
2. “Collectivism is the idea that the individual life belongs not to him but to the group or society in which he is merely a part, that he has no rights, and that he must sacrifice his values and goals for the groups “greater good” (Biddle 1)....

...We live in a world that revolves around community
we are told to care for others at a young age
It might be because of this fact alone that gives rise to individualismIndividualism (catalysts, creativity, influence ) spurs cultural revolution as well as religious revolution( Buddha, people who are geniuses, have great experience in relatable personal experience)
Cant abide by the rules of a larger institution. Stifles a person’s own individualism
Hawthorne's counsel to the reader as an individual and as an American is to imbibe the complexity of the world. Maturation comes when one is able to refrain from depending on ready-made formulaic understandings of life, and to sift out worthwhile values through the sieve of others' opinions and actions.
Hawthorne protects his true meaning, means to be equivocal in order to promote individuality. Through inscrutable details, mystifying, juxtaposition of contradictory details. Individualism should be embedded in the community.
Love and a sense of belonging important for individualism
Have to different from others and not afraid to show it
These blurred meanings and the celebration of the individual’s subjective voice is very closely tied to a democratic heteroglossia - the celebration of many individual voices. This dialogical discourse is integral to democratic culture; it refuses to recognize a single “official” voice and instead focuses on a...

...Soc Indic Res (2012) 108:29–64
DOI 10.1007/s11205-011-9865-y
Parenthood and Happiness: a Review of Folk Theories
Versus Empirical Evidence
Thomas Hansen
Accepted: 9 May 2011 / Published online: 26 May 2011
Ó Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2011
Abstract This paper reviews and compares folk theories and empirical evidence about
the inﬂuence of parenthood on happiness and life satisfaction. The review of attitudes
toward parenthood and childlessness reveals that people tend to believe that parenthood is
central to a meaningful and fulﬁlling life, and that the lives of childless people are emptier,
less rewarding, and lonelier, than the lives of parents. Most cross-sectional and longitudinal
evidence suggest, however, that people are better off without having children. It is mainly
children living at home that interfere with well-being, particularly among women, singles,
lower socioeconomic strata, and people residing in less pronatalist societies—especially
when these characteristics are combined. The discrepancy between beliefs and ﬁndings is
discussed in relation to the various costs of parenting; the advantages of childlessness;
adaptation and compensation among involuntarily childless persons; cognitive biases; and
the possibility that parenthood confers rewards in terms of meaning rather than happiness.
Keywords Life satisfaction Á Happiness Á Children Á Parenthood Á Parental status Á...